Machines for shaping uppers over lasts



y 1959 I c. K. WOODMAN I 2,894,272

MACHINES FOR SHAPING UPPERS OVER LASTS Filed Dc. 25, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet1 July 14, 1959 c. K. WOODMAN I 2,894,272

MACHINES FOR SHAPING UPPERS OVER LASTS Filed Dec. 25, 1955 2Sheets-Sheet 2 United States Patent 2,894,272 MACHINES FOR SHAPINGUPPERS OVER LASTS Charles K. Woodman, Beverly, Mass., assignor to UnitedShoe Machinery (Corporation, Flemington, N.J., a corporation of NewJersey Application December 23, 1955, Serial No. 554,994

8 Claims. 01-. 12-101 This invention relates to machines for shapinguppers over lasts. and is herein illustrated as embodied in a pullingover machine of a well-known type. It will be understood, however, thatin their broader aspects features of the invention are not limited touse in a pulling over machine of this particular type or to the exactmechanical arrangement herein shown.

During the pulling over operation as performed, for example, on apulling over machine of the type herein illustrated, the upper materialsare positioned in a lengthwise direction, relatively to the toe end ofthe last, by a manual manipulation of the toe gripper effected by theoperator, during a dwell in the operating cycle of the machine, whichmanipulation may consist of a further movement of the gripper to pullthe upper materials to the desired location or, if the initial pull ofthe toe gripper has already pulled the upper materials too far towardthe foe end of the last, the operator may, while holding the gripperagainst movement by its operating spring, open the gripper to permit theupper materials to retract to the desired location. In either case, thisoperation involves the exercise of considerable effort and care on thepant of the operator and takes a substantial amount of time. It is,therefore, a principal object of the present invention to provide, in apulling over machine, means fof so facilitating" this operation that theupper materials may bebrought to the desired location relatively to thetoe end of the last with greater accuracy and speed and also with littleor no effort on the part of the operator.

With this object in view, the herein illustrated machine which, incommon with pulling over machines of the type hereunder consideration,has a toe gripper which is actuated by power operated means including ayieldable connection for imparting movement to the toe gripper in adirection extending heightwise of a last, is provided with mechanism forarresting the movement of the toe gripper during the operation of thepower operated means just before the upper materials have been pulled tothe desiredlocation on the last and operator controlled means forselectively releasing and reengag'ing the gripper arresting mechanism tocause a controlled additional movement of the gripper by the yieldablemeans. More particularly, the power operated means includes a cam and; aspring for imparting movement to the gripper, while the mechanism forarresting movement ofthe gripper comprises a fluid brake and a valvewhich is arranged to be automatically closed to bring the brake intoaction when the toe gripper has been moved to pull the upper materialsto anadjustably predetermined position on the last. Manual means arealso provided for opening another valve to release the brake so that theoperator, by repeatedly opening and then closing the lastnamed valve,can cause the gripper arresting mechanism to release and reengage thegripper and thereby effect a very accurately controlled additionalmovement of the gripper by the spring until the upper materials havebeen brought to the desired location on 2,894,272 Patented July 14, 1959the last. Preferably, and inthe herein illustrated machine, themechanism for arresting the movement of the toe gripper is arranged tobe automatically adjusted, in response to adjusting. movements of thetoe gripper lengthwise of the shoe, to vary the extent of movement ofthe gripper so as to accommodate shoes of difierent sizes and, furtherto facilitate the operation of pulling the upper materials to the properlengthwise location on the 'last, the herein illustrated machine isprovided with a visual indicating means.

The above and other objects and features of the invention will beapparent in the following detailed description of the preferredembodiment which is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and willbe pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings,

Fig. l is a view in side elevation of a pulling over machine embodying.features of the present invention, shown with certain parts of themachine broken away and others omitted to simplify the disclosure;

Fig. 2 is a view in front elevation of a portion of the machine shown inFig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a view in perspective of another portion of the machine;

Fig. 4 is a view in side elevation of that portion of the machine shownin Fig. 3 with certain parts in vertical section;

Fig. 5 is a view in section substantially on line V-V of Fig. 4 andlooking in the direction of the arrows;

Fig. 6 is a view in perspective of another portion of the machine withcertain parts shown in section;

Fig. 7 is a plan view of a portion of a shoe in the machine; and

Fig. 8 is a schematic drawing illustrating control mechanism associatedwith the machine.

Referring to the drawings, and-particularly to Fig. 1 thereof, theinvention is therein illustrated as embodied in a pulling over machineofthe type disclosed in United States Letters Patent No. 1,029,387,granted on June 11, 1912, on an application filed in the name of RonaldP. McFeely, modified in some respects in accordance with the disclosureof United States Letters Patent No. 2,007,973, granted on July 16, 1935on an application filed in the name of Bernhardt Jorgensen. Thus, thismachine has a toe gripper 10 and a pair of side grippers 12, one ofwhich is shown, for seizing the uppermaterials at the extreme end and atthe opposite sides of the toe of a shoe and for moving heightwise of alast to exert a pull to stretch the upper materials U over the last,together with overlaying and fastener inserting devices, one of which isshown and indicated by the reference character 14, for wiping thelasting margin of the tensioned upper materials inwardly over and forsecuring it to the bottom of a shoe atthe end and opposite sides of thetoe of the shoe. During the operation of the machine, the shoe on itslast is supported on a shoe rest 16 and, prior to the operation of theoverlaying and fastener inserting devices, the upper is clamped to theopposite sides of the toe end of thelast by a pair of clamp members, oneof which is indicated generally by the reference character 18. Thementioned operating elements are mounted onand operated by mechanismcontained within a main frame 20 and include a main camshaft which isdriven through a suitable clutch under the control of a foot treadlernot shown.

The toe jgripper 10 is connected to an operating lever 30, having a handgrip portion 32 and a gripper con trol member 34 associated therewith,and this lever is adapted to be actuated bypower operated meansincluding a cam, not shown, and anoperating slide 36 which is connectedto one arm of the lever 30,through-a yieldable connection provided bya'spring 38. In a like manner, the two side grippers 12 are connected tooperating levers 40, one of which appears in Fig. 1, and these leversare adapted to be actuated byanother cam, not shown,

anoperating slide 42,,and another spring 44. Asis usual in machines ofthis type, the herein illustrated machine has a manually operable leverarm 50 and mechanism whereby the movements of the side grippers .may. becontrolled during theoperation of the machine, see

Patent No. 2,007,97 3, referred to above.

It will be understood that pulling over machines of the type hereinillustrated operate in a cycle having two distinct stages, during thefirst of which the toe and side grippers are closed on the uppermaterials and then are actuated to exert a pull to stretch the uppermaterials over the last, whereupon the machine comes to a stop with theupper materials under tension. The operator now has an opportunity toinspect the upper and to determine if it is properly located on the.last and suitably stretched thereover. After making appropriateadjustments in the location of the upper by manipulation of the toe and/or side grippers, the machine is again started by a second depression ofthe treadle, and during this second vstage in the operating cycle, theoverlaying fastener inserting devices are operated to wipe the lastingmargin of the upper materials inwardly over and to secure said margin tothe bottom of the shoe. One of the most frequent adjustments of thelocation of the upper materials relatively to the last which theoperator is required to make is to shift the upper lengthwise of thelast, by suitable manipulation of the toe gripper, effected by means ofthe hand grip portion 32 of the lever 30, in order properly to locatethe tip seam T of the ,upper relatively to the toe end of the last. Theherein illustrated machine is provided with mechanism about to bedescribed which greatly facilitates this operation.

Referring to Fig. 1 of the drawings, the operating lever 30 is connectedto one end of the rod 60 of a piston 62 (diagrammatically illustrated inFig. 8) received within a cylinder 64 which is mounted on a portion ofthe machine frame 20. Also connected to the operating lever 30 is acontrol rod 66 which is cut away at 68 to provide a control cam portion70. One end of this rod is slidable within a guide bore 72 in anupstanding ear 74 formed on a block 76, Figs. 3, 4 and 5. This block hasa tongue 78 slidable in a guideway 80 formed in a member 82 which ismounted on an outwardly projecting portion of the machine frame 20, Fig.5. Mounted on the block 76 is a normally closed microswitch M-1 havingan operating plunger 84 which is in engagement with the cut-away portion68 of the control rod 66 when the machine is idle, see Fig. 8. Connectedto the opposite ends, respectively, of the cylinder 64 are two conduits90, 92 which are joined by two cross-connecting conduits 94, 96.

Located in the cross-connecting conduit 94 is a solenoid operated valveS-l having a coil 98, whilelocated in the cross-connecting conduit 96 isa similar solenoid operated valve S-2 having a coil 100. These valvesare of conventional construction and each includes a valve plunger, notshown, which is adapted to be held in closed position by a spring, notshown, and to be moved to open position by an armature when its coil isenergized. The cylinder 64 and conduits 90, 92, 94 and 96 are entirelyfilled with fluid, such as oil, by means of a filler funnel 102, pipe104, and a shut-off valve 106, Figs. 1 and 2. Referring to Fig. 8, thecoil 98 of valve S-1 is directly connected to one end of a lead 110 andat its other end is connected to another lead 112 through themicroswitch M-1 and/ or a second microswitch M-2. The coil 100 of thevalve 8-2 is likewise connected at one end to the lead 110 and at itsother end is connected to the lead 112 through a microswitch M-3. Theleads 110 and 112 are connected to a suitable source of electricalenergy, not shown. Also interposed in the'cross-connecting conduit 96 isa needle valve 114 which is diagrammatically illustrated in Fig. 8.

When the machine is at rest, the control rod 66 occupies the positionshown in Fig. 8 with the plunger 84 of the switch M-1 engaging thecut-away portion 68 of the rod so that the switch M-1 is closed toenergize the coil 98 of the valve S-l. Accordingly, when the toe gripperis actuated during the initial stage of the operating cycle of themachine, the piston 62 moves freely within the'cylinder 64 as fluidflows freely between the opposite ends of the cylinder through conduits90, 92 and 94 and the open valve S-l, valve S-2 at this time being heldclosed by its spring, since coil 100 thereof is deenergized. Eventuallythe control cam portion 70 of the rod 66 engages the plunger 84 andopens the switch M-1, thereby deenergizing the coil 98 and causing thevalve S-1 to be closed by its spring. Continued movement of the piston62 and hence of the toe gripper is now arrested bythe fluid trapped inthe upper portion of the cylinder 64, and in conduits and 94. Therefore,as the toe gripper. cam completes its operating movement, the spring 38will be further compressed to absorb the throw of this cam.

The block 82 is so positioned and the cam portion 70 of the control rod66 is so located that movement of the toe gripper is thus arrested justbefore the upper materials have been drawn forwardly by the toe gripperto the desired location lengthwise of the last. Now, after the machinehas come to a stop at the conclusion of the initial stage of itsoperating cycle with the toe and side grippers exerting their pulls onthe upper materials, the operator can release the toe gripper forfurther movement under the action of the compressed spring 38 by closingthe switch M3 and thereby energizing the coil of the valve S-2 andcausing this valve to open. Fluid now can flow through thecross-connecting conduit 96 at a measured rate, as determined by thesetting of the needle valve 114. Thus, by repeatedly opening and closingthe switch M-3, which has an operating plunger 116 and is convenientlylocated on the lever arm 50, Fig. l, the operator can inch the toegripper along and very accurately locate the upper materials lengthwiseof the last.

. During the second stage of the operating cycle of the machine, andjust before the toe and side grippers are opened to release the uppermaterials, the sideclarnps 18 are moved inwardly to clamp the upperagainst the last. The switch M-2, referred to above, is adapted to beclosed by one of the arms which carries a side clamp when the clamp isthus moved inwardly, thereby energizing the coil 98 and opening thevalve 8-1 to free the toe gripper 10 for movement away from the shoeafter this gripper has been opened to release the upper materials. Ifdesired, a fourth microswitch M-4 may be interposed in the lead 112, seeFig. 8, and arranged to be opened when the machine is at rest, i.e.,before or after each complete operating cycle, thereby to preventoverheat: ing of the coil 98 of the valve S-1. As is illustrated in Fig.2, the valves S-1 and S-2 are supported on an arm 120 which is securedto one of two brackets 122, 122 bymeans of which the cylinder 64 ismounted on the frame 20 of the machine.

As is shown in Fig. 1, the control rod 66 is made in two parts, theuppermost of which is enlarged at provided with a bore to receive thelower part which is secured therein by means of a setscrew 132. Byloosening this screw, the lower part of the control rod may be shiftedrelatively to the upper part, thereby to change the position of the camportion 70 with respect to the operating plunger 84 of the switch M-l.Thus, the amount of movement of the toe gripper 10, prior to the closingof the valve 98, may be accurately adjusted. In addition to thisadjustment, the herein illustrated machineis prowith means forautomatically changing theposition of the switch M-1 and of itsoperating plunger 84, relatively to the control rod 66 and its camportion 70;

rai es to accommodate shoes of different sizesi with pulling overmachines of the typedisclosled in; the above-mentioned patents, theherein illustrated machine is provided with mechanism forsimultaneoilslythe toe and side grippers toward or away from the shoe rest 16, thismechanism incjluding 'a hand knob 140, Fig; 1, and a positioning member142'against which thetoe gripper is held by means of a spring, notshown.

Referring to Figs. 3, 4 and 5,, secured tofone side; of the block 76 onwhich the switch M -1 is mounted, is a rack 160 and meshingiwiththis isa pinion 162. This pinion is pressed onto the hub of a second pinion 164which is journaled on a stud 166 mounted on' a side plate 16$,associated with the member 82. Meshing with-the pinion 164 is a secondrack170 which is slidably mounted in a guideway 172 formed in a block174," secured to the frame member 20 by, means of a screw 176. An;enlarged end 180 formed on this rack, is held yieldingly in engagementwith a pressure surface 182 formed on the toe gripper by means of a coilspring 184wh ich'bears against a pin 186 carried by the rack. As will beapparent, when the toe gripper 10 is moved toward the shoe rest 16, toaccommodate a smaller shoe, the rack 170 will move downwardly, as viewedin Fig. 4; and, through the action of the pinio ns"162;.164, cause theblock 76 and the switch M-1 carried thereby, to move downwardly, i.e.,to the right as viewed Fig. 4, thereby locating the plunger 84 of theswitch M-l closer to the cam portion 70 on the control rod 66. Thus themovement of the toe gripper to pull the upper material will be limitedto a shorter distance before the gripper is brought to a stop as a"""ult of the opening of are S viv'itch M-1 by the cam p' 70 on thecontro lirod 66. Conversely, if the toe gri'pp'e'r 10 is moved away fromthe shoe rest, to accommodate a larger shoe, the switch M-l will bemoved upwardly, as viewed in Fig. l, i.e., to the left as viewed in Fig.4, thereby providing for a longer movement of the toe gripper before itis brought to a stop. The relative sizes of the two pinions 162, 164 aresuch that the mentioned decrease and increase in the amount of travel ofthe toe gripper is substantially proportional to the extent of grippermovement required for small and large shoes respectively.

As suggested above, the lower portion of the control rod 66 is soadjusted, relatively to its upper portion, and the switch M-1 is solocated, relatively to the cam portion 70 of the control rod, that thepulling movement of the toe gripper 10 is arrested just before the uppermaterials U have been brought to the desired location lengthwise of thetoe end of the last. Thereafter, the toe gripper is inched along as theoperator closes and opens switch M-3 until the upper materials arebrought to the desired location, i.e., until the tip line T is in theproper lengthwise position on the last. To assist the operator indetermining when. this proper position has been reached, the hereinillustrated machine is provided with a visual indicator means.

The aforementioned indicator means comprises a triangular member 190which is fastened to one of the offset ends of a rod 192, the other endof which is mounted in a block 194. This block is rotatably supported bymeans of a stud 196 in a member 198 which is supported on a portion ofthe machine frame by means of a bracket 200, see Fig. 6. A coil spring202 tends to hold the block 194 yieldingly against an end face 204 ofthe member 198 with the end of a pin 206 extending into a hole (notshown) in the member 198. With this arrangement, the block 194 may bepulled slightly away from the member 198 and then rotated to swing themember 190 to an inoperative position. The member 190 is made oftransparent material such as glass or plastic and has on it two lines Rand L. These lines indicate, respectively, the proper lengthwiseposition (and also the proper angular position) of the tip use of theupper of right and left shoes. Therefore; after the pulling movement ofthe toe gripper has" been arrested in the manner explained above,- theoperator, afte manipulating'the side grippers in the usual" manner tobring the tip line into parallelism with the proper line R or L, maytheninch the toe gripper along until the" tipline T coincides withthat-line.

Having" thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. Ina machine for shaping uppers over lasts, a gripper for seizing theupper of a' shoe and movable thereafter in a direction extendingheightwise of a last to tension the upper over the last, power operatedmeans including a yiaaaue connection for imparting move ment to' the"gripper, means including a brake device for arresting the movement ofthe gripper during the opera tion of said power operated means inresponse to movement of the gripper to an adjustably predeterminedposition; and means under the control of the operator for selectivelyreleasing and reengaging the brake device to effect a controlledadditional movement of the gripper to any selected position within itsrange of movement by said yie'ldable connection.

, 2. In amachirie for shaping uppers over lasts, a gripper for seizingthe upper of a shoe and movable thereafter in a direction extendingheightwise of a last to tension the upper over the last, power operatedmeans including a spring for imparting movement to the gripper, meansincluding a brake device connected to the gripper for' arresting themovement of the gripper during the operation of said power operatedmeans in response to movement of theflg ripper to an adjustablypredetermined position, and means under" the dentist ofthe operator forselectively releasirig and reeng aging the brake device to effect acontrolled additional movement of the gripper to any selected positionwithin its range of movement by said spring.

3. In a machine for shaping uppers over lasts, a gripper for seizing theupper of a shoe and movable thereafter in a direction extendingheightwise of a last to tension the upper over the last, power operatedmeans including a spring for imparting movement to the gripper, meansincluding a fluid brake device connected to the gripper for arrestingthe movement of the gripper during the operation of said power operatedmeans in response to movement of the gripper to an adjustablypredetermined position, and means under the control of the operator forselectively releasing and reengaging the brake device to effect acontrolled additional movement of the gripper by said spring.

4. In a machine for shaping uppers over lasts, a gripper for seizing theupper of a shoe and movable thereafter in a direction extendingheightwise of a last to tension the upper over the last, said gripperbeing adjustable in a direction extending lengthwise of a shoe in themachine to accommodate shoes of different sizes, power operated meansincluding a yieldable connection for imparting movement to the gripper,means connected to the gripper and operable to arrest the movement ofthe gripper during the operation of the power operated means when thegripper has moved to a predetermined position, said means including amember movable in response to adjustment of said gripper to vary saidpredetermined position, and means under the control of the operator forselectively releasing and reengaging the gripper arresting means toeffect a controlled additional movement of the gripper by said yieldableconnection.

5. In a machine for shaping uppers over lasts, a gripper for seizing theupper of a shoe and movable thereafter in a direction extendingheightwise of a last to tension the upper over the last, said gripperbeing adjustable in a direction extending lengthwise of a shoe in themachine to accommodate shoes of different sizes, power operated meansincluding a spring for imparting movement to the gripper, meansconnected to the gripper and operable to arrest the movement of thegripper during the operation of saidpower operated means when thegripper has moved to a predetermined position, said means including amember movable in response to adjustment of said gripper and adapted tovary said predetermined position, and means under the control of theoperator for selectively releasing and reengaging the gripper arrestingmeans to effect a controlled additional movement of the gripper by saidspring.

6. In a machine for shaping uppers over lasts, a gripper for seizing theupper of a shoe and movable thereafter in a direction extendingheightwise of a last to tension the upper over the last, said gripperbeing adjustable in a direction extending, lengthwise of a shoe in themachine to accommodate shoes of diiferent sizes, power operated meansincluding a yieldable connection for imparting movement to the gripper,means including a brake device for arresting the movement of the gripperduring the operation of said power operated means when the gripper hasmoved to a predetermined position, said means including a member movablein response to adjustment of said gripper and adapted to vary saidpredetermined position, and means under the control of the operator forselectively releasing and reengaging the brake device to effect acontrolled additional movement of the gripper by said yieldableconnection.

7. In a machine for shaping uppers over lasts, a gripper for seizing theupper of a shoe and movable thereafter in a direction extendingheightwise of a last to tension the upper over the last, said gripperbeing adjustable in a direction extending lengthwise of a shoe in themachine to accommodate shoes of different sizes, power operated meansincluding a spring for imparting movement to the gripper, meansincluding a brake device connectedto the gripper for arresting themovement of the gripper during the operation of said power operatedmeans when the gripper has moved to 'a predetermined position, saidmeans including 'a member movable in response to adjustment of saidgripper andadapted to vary said predetermined position, and means underthe'control of the operator for selectively releasing and reengaging thebrake de vice to effect a controlled additional movement of the gripper'by said spring.

7 8. In a machine for shaping uppers over lasts, a gripper for seizingthe upper of a shoe and movable thereafter in a direction extendingheightwise of a last to tension the upper over the last, said gripperbeing adjustable in a direction extending lengthwise of a shoe in themachine to accommodate shoes of difierent sizes, power operated meansincluding a spring for imparting movement to the gripper, meansincluding a fluid brake device connected to the gripper for arrestingthe movement of the gripper during the operation of said power operatedmeans when the. gripper has moved to a predetermined position, saidmeans including a member movable in response to adjustment of saidgripper and adapted to vary said predetermined position, and means underthe control of the operator for selectively releasing and reengaging thebrake device to efiect a controlled additional movement of the gripperby said spring.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,090,548 La Chapelle Mar. 17, 1914 1,169,414 McFeely Ian. 25, 19161,333,951 Verderber Mar. 16, 1920 1,421,394 Brothers July 4, 1922

